Emory Barksdale
by Shiva-J
Summary: What if Amy Barksdale had been born a guy? Well as Emory Barksdale enters Daria's life we're about to find out.
1. Emory Doesn't

**Emory Doesn't**

As the red corvette pulled up in front of Windsor Hill's, with the sounds of Classic Rock blaring at full volume, Quinn asked, "Who's that?"

Daria's eyes opened wide in surprise and exclaimed, "Uncle Emory?!"

As soon as the car stopped, the man got out of the car and told the valet that, "I don't mind a few dents, but change the radio station and you are a dead man."

Once he was away from the car, Daria realized that he was only half a head taller than herself, his hair was a darker shade of auburn than hers, but his eyes were the same shade of brown.

He was thin but had broad shoulders and cut a good shapely figure in his formal black suit.

"Emory!" Rita said with patently false happiness, "What a delight! I thought you weren't coming..."

"I wasn't," Emory said flatly in a soft, dull monotone, "But I figured if you two could put aside the years of anger and bitterness then so could I... For a day."

As her mother went into spin mode at that, Daria felt a gleam of delight as Emory shut her down with just two words and then told Jake that he was surprised that he was still with Helen.

"Shows remarkable fortitude." Emory stated and then revealed just how disconnected he was from the rest of the family by confusing Rita's current boyfriend Paul with the dead skydiver Roger.

"Who's Roger?" Paul asked in confusion.

"He fell onto a cow!" Quinn exclaimed with a giggle.

"And he was the lucky one." Daria quipped and sparked outrage from her mother.

"Relax Hell-bells," Emory said and accidently-on-purpose revealed his sister's childhood nickname and smiled when she blanched, "What's the point of a senseless death if you can't find the humor in it? I like the way your girls think."

As he followed his idiot sister Rita into the Hotel, he tuned her out and heard Helen's youngest say, "Wow, Uncle Emory is weird."

"Yeah..." Daria drawled but only an idiot like Quinn would miss the admiration in her tone, and Emory entered the building with a big smile.

* * *

It had taken some doing but Rita was able to find an extra seat for her little brother, and he relished her bitter mutterings about his faux pas but said nothing.

"It's fun to make the bitches miserable." Emory thought to himself as he took his seat and witnessed the ceremony unfold before his eyes, just by looking at them it was obvious that Erin was blinded by love since her choice for a first husband was a smarmy asshole.

"And I haven't even talked to him yet." Emory thought with a sneer and glanced at the wedding party, the only two up there that were interesting was the boy with the strange hair and his niece Daria.

Her attention drifted and when her face fell on his, Emory crossed his eyes and stuck his tongue out and smiled when she laughed.

Then had to turn a laugh into a cough himself when Daria pointed at an oblivious Quinn and said, "It was her!"

* * *

After the ceremony was over, Emory managed to spend a few minutes in the reception hall before the crowd became a bit overwhelming, so he excused himself and found a quiet hallway near the bathrooms and stared at his reflection in the mirror with a sneer.

"I hate myself in a suit." he said to himself, not noticing Daria walking by in her ill-fitted dress, "And everyone else too."

"I'm not thrilled to be here either," she said to him and smiled when he jumped a bit.

Emory managed to recover quickly and chuckled, "You surprised me Daria, and that was before you snuck up on me."

"Really?" she asked in surprise and her uncle nodded firmly.

"Yes," Emory replied with joy, "It's rare to meet someone on the same wavelength."

"Tell me about it." Daria replied as she stood next to him in front of the mirror, both of them seeing how similar they were in the reflection.

"Only if you tell me about you right back." Emory replied with a small half-smile that was quickly matched by hers.

* * *

"I'm impressed," Emory replied after they both finished filling each other in on their lives, "When I was in High School I didn't have a friend like Jane, it would have made it easier to survive."

"What did you have?" Daria found herself asking and Emory sighed.

"Two bickering sisters, a bitch for a mother, a father that couldn't understand why his only son didn't give a crap about sports, classmates that didn't get me, my only allies were a handful of good teachers. But once I was out in the world I found myself all grown up with my own point of view, and feeling no particular obligation to listen to anyone else's B.S."

He then finished very firmly with, "Ever."

"So it all worked out in the end." His niece replied with a slight smirk.

He laughed and replied, "Well unless I have to see my sisters at weddings then, yeah." He paused and then added after the beat, "Sarcasm, it's a great way to deal... But you wouldn't know anything about that, would you?"

He then slipped on his prescription glasses for a second on a lark and anyone that saw them and didn't know them could be forgiven for thinking that they were father and daughter.

Daria smirked with cheek, "Nah..."

* * *

"God they are so easy." Emory thought to himself after he had added fuel to the fire with just a few short sentences and a drunk Helen and a pissed off Rita were going at it like two wet cats in a sack.

"And the extended clan isn't helping either," He added as he witnessed Erin, her new husband, Rita's current boyfriend, and Helen's husband all struggling to contain the situation and making it worse in the process.

He glanced at the table of the Wedding Party and saw it's only two occupants, Daria and that boy... Lurhman was it? Watching the show with a vague sort of curiosity.

Emory smirked and snuck up from behind them and said, "Things are getting ugly. I suggest we three make a hasty but unobtrusive exit."

Daria replied with surprise, "Really?"

His smirk grew, "Let's find a place that serves cheese fries or something."

The boy replied first, "Sounds good."

Having been outvoted, and clearly not wanting to become collateral damage, Daria sighed mocking and said, "Sure."

But even a moron could see that she was more than willing to go.

Especially as they walked past the now fighting Barksdale sisters and Emory told them, "Look neither to the left or the right, there is nothing we can do for these people anymore."

On their way out they walked past the minister of the ceremony fighting the best man tooth and nail with Quinn watching the show with happiness, Emory felt another smirk at the madness form on his face but he said nothing and did nothing to help the situation.

It would work itself out.

* * *

It didn't take long in his corvette to find a place that would serve them greasy salty goodness, Emory parked in front of a bowling alley and said, "This place should do just fine."

In their finery they entered the redneck-esque establishment and found that they had been beaten by Erin's new husband who was sitting at the bar with a beer in hand.

He looked at them and said, "I am NOT going back there, I don't care who sent you."

The trio walked past him and Daria said jokingly, "Does he look familiar?"

"I think I saw him on _America's Least Wanted_." Emory teased as they found an empty table with three chairs.

Once they were seated, Emory sighed and said, "I guess you want to know what your Aunts were like when they were kids, right?"

Daria shrugged and said, "Sure, what were they like?"

Emory smirked, "Just like they are now."

Luhrman spoke up as the server approached, "How about a new topic?"

"Name it." Emory replied kindly, feeling a strange sense of companionship with the two of them.

As they ordered cheese fries and cokes, Emory Barksdale couldn't help but wonder what the future had in store for them both.

"But no matter what it is, I'll make sure to stay in touch with them," Emory thought to himself with finality, "It's hard to grow up around dullards, they're going to need all the support they can get."

He knew that from firsthand experience.

As the order arrived and they dug in with gusto, the conversation flowed and Emory felt glad for them both when he learned that they did have a support system of sorts back in their hometowns.

"I sort of envy them for that," Emory admitted to himself, "But that doesn't mean that they won't need extra help."

As they finished their greasy meal, Emory reaffirmed his decision and gave them both his number, and he got both of theirs in return.

"I wonder what we'll find at Windsor Hills." Luhrman thought aloud after Emory settled the bill.

Emory smirked at that, "The cops, the building partly demolished, my sister's either arrested or drunk as skunks, Paul long gone, and as for my brother-in-law... Not sure."

The last thing that anyone heard Daria say in that bowling alley was, "Playing golf in the dark with a flashlight."

The doors shut behind them and spared the patron's the sounds of monotonic laughter.

**THE END**


	2. Emory's Visit

**Emory's Visit**

With one last flurry of activity, his sister and her husband _finally_ left for the weekend Conference that Jake was going to, the details didn't really matter, instead what mattered to Emory Barksdale were his two nieces.

Especially his favorite.

"So now that the rents are gone, any grand plans that don't involve a kegger?" he asked jokingly, even while wondering how much of Helen's story about the last time she had left Quinn alone at home was true.

The pouting and foot stomping from the annoying redhead told him that it was the truth, for once.

But Quinn composed herself and said in that high-pitched voice that reminded him of Rita at that age, "Well I'm going with the Fashion Club to the mall, then a date with Jerome, and then I'll be staying at Sandi's for the weekend."

Emory nodded, "Ok then, well you have the house number in case you need anything."

He then put the girl out of his thoughts, even though she was still in the room, her relevancy was gone.

Instead he addressed Daria with a warm smile, "So Daria, what do you want to do?"

She smiled back, and Quinn gasped in shock when she noticed it, "I was hoping to invite a few friends over to meet you."

Emory laughed and joked, "Were you in on that kegger?"

"Nope," Daria replied honestly, "I went over to Jane's that weekend and let Quinn hang herself with it, I just want Jane and her brother and any member of Mystik Spiral that is around and awake to meet my cool uncle."

Emory replied slyly, "Sounds good to me, in the meanwhile... How will we kill the time?"

"Sick, Sad World?" Daria offered up.

"I'll give it a shot." Emory replied and followed Daria to the couch, neither of them noticed that Quinn was still in the room and was watching them with a look of total surprise.

* * *

Emory laughed as the credits began to roll, "I have to admit you were right Daria, this is so bad for you that it's good for you."

Daria beamed at the praise, "Thanks Emory."

He took in the sight of his bespeckled niece and told her, "No problem Daria."

Then the doorbell rang.

Daria got up to answer it and Emory stretched out on the couch and watched the flickering box.

In the meanwhile, Daria opened the door and Jane Lane in, while exchanging pleasantries Daria moved to the side and indicated towards the couch, "That's the Uncle I've told you about, Emory Barksdale."

Jane stood stock still and her lips parted slightly as she stared at the thin, broad shouldered figure on the couch in his dark blue sweater, comfy jeans and sneakers, his wry and yet handsome face that reminded her of...

"Daria." was Jane's last rational thought before she struggled to say something _really_ cool that would catch his attention.

This is what she came up with.

_"mblmblmbl hi!"_

Emory smiled, "A pleasure, I assume this is Jane?"

Daria nodded, "Yup, though I'm surprised that she didn't bring Trent like she promised."

While Jane tried to speak at a level audible to humans, Daria tried to figure out what the hell was wrong with Jane.

Finally she managed to squeak out, _"mblmblmbl asleep."_

"Ah," Daria breathed while the wheels turned in her head, "Figures."

Emory asked, "Exhaustion? Booze? Weed?"

"Narcolepsy." Daria said flatly.

"Ouch." Emory replied in turn.

Jane in the meanwhile turned beet red as Emory rose from the couch and came up closer and asked her a question about her art.

_"mblmblmbl at my place."_ she answered.

Then Daria felt something click in her head and she managed a second smile that night, but it was a teasing grin that normally graced her friend's face whenever Trent was in the room with Daria.

"Cool," Daria said very dryly, "Since my Uncle and myself only had plans to go out to eat tonight, you could come with and we could swing by Casa Lane and give Emory a preview of your work."

Even while cursing Daria's immortal soul, Jane felt her heart flutter at the thought of Emory in _her_ house, in _her_ bedroom...

She had to fight back a squee of epic proportions.

* * *

At Chez Pierre, Emory had a fun time showing the girls the spelling errors in the 'authentic' French menus and gave them pens to mark down corrections, the server was exasperated even before he brought them their appetizers.

Jane managed to compose herself long enough to ask what he did for a living.

"Oh I work as a freelance Art Appraiser," Emory explained and then contemplated the girlish gasp from Jane for a long moment and reached a conclusion but didn't comment on it.

Instead he regaled them with tales of his work for various museums in the New York and Boston areas while the server brought them their food at last.

The food was subpar in Emory's opinion, but refrained from speaking about it until Daria stated that she found the so-called 'French cuisine' to be not so French at all.

"You are correct," Emory replied, "Though I didn't expect much considering the area but I have been surprised before... Just not this time."

Jane laughed at that very loudly and attracted quite a bit of attention and then stopped and flushed crimson and didn't really talk much until the check came.

But Daria and Emory maintained a good conversation, catching up on each other, Daria learned that Emory had kept to his personal word and was also in touch with Luhrman, who as it turned out lived in Boston.

"I honestly prefer Boston to New York," Emory said sagely, "It feels more like home to me than anywhere else in the world."

Daria smiled at that, "I was thinking about going to college in Boston, Raft being my obvious choice."

Emory grinned, "The college of the aspiring writer, I have good memories of that place even though I went to Tennyson. A number my old girlfriends went to school at Raft so..."

He then stopped himself and laughed instead as he settled the bill and they got up to depart, "Well I won't bore you with those stories."

As the three of them left, they didn't see Quinn at a booth with her date, unable to take her eyes off of them.

"Uh Quinn," he said, "What's going on?"

"It's nothing Jared." she said dismissively.

"It's Jamie!" he protested.

"Whatever."

* * *

Jane glowed like the sun as she displayed the best of her work in the Lane living room, not quite able to bring herself to take Emory into her bedroom.

"Especially since Daria's around." she thought with more bitterness than her friend deserved as she showed Emory the one she called 'The Warped Woman'.

"Very good choice of colors," Emory breathed with pleasure as he took it in, "An interesting take on the subject matter... Is it from a dream?"

Jane laughed, keeping her eyes on the painting and not Emory himself, "The waking nightmare of High School, it's our Principal as I see her, well her emotional state at any rate."

Daria and Emory joined in the laughter.

"Jane you are truly a great artist," Emory stated, "And I'm not trying to flatter you, I normally only see this level of talent and skill from someone much older, not a student artist."

Jane blushed, "_mblmblmblmbl thanks_."

"You are welcome Ms. Lane," Emory told her happily, "Why between you and my niece there is enough talent in this room to spark a creative revolution."

"I like that," Daria said even while smiling at her friend, "Especially since the creative types get to set their own hours."

Emory laughed, "Only the successful ones sadly."

He then said more seriously, "Jane, you really should consider applying at BFAC when it's time for college."

"_mblmblmblmbl really_?"

"Yes really," Emory replied, "It's a world class art school and I happen to have a lot of pull there, and at Raft too, neither of you has to worry about getting in with your Uncle on the case."

Daria chuckled, "So we'll get in the old fashion way, bribery and nepotism."

Emory grinned, "Just nepotism, I don't have the cash to bribe _those_ people."

"Well Mom did say that having connections was important," Daria conceded, "I'm just glad that I didn't have to go far afield to get them."

"Especially since most of those good connections are connected to people that suck." Jane concluded while keeping her eyes _away_ from Emory.

* * *

Daria and Jane had a blast during that weekend with Emory Barksdale, between showing him the suck that was Lawndale and snarking away, Emory telling off Upchuck for his sleazy attempts at hitting on his niece, Brittany and Kevin confusing him for her father, being exposed to the Zon and the music of Mystik Spiral; "Well they say you have to start at the bottom." Emory said of them.

"And there isn't a bottom to this." Daria had added cunningly.

The only strange factor came from the occasional run-in with Quinn and her friends, the three of whom also confused him for Daria's father and referred to her as 'Quinn's Cousin'.

"Is she still pulling that crap?" Emory asked without bothering to get out of earshot.

"Yup." Daria replied flatly.

He sniffed, "She's worse than Rita and Helen put together, I'd put in a word with Hell-bells but it's clear that Quinn's the spoiled princess who can do no wrong."

"Until real life slaps her in the face." Daria offered up and they both laughed at Quinn's expense.

Not giving a crap that she had heard every single word.

But alas the weekend came to an end, and Jake and Helen returned to Lawndale looking like they had been run ragged and with stories about sucky businessmen and an incident in a balloon.

However Emory tuned it out and when asked how the girls were replied that they were just fine, he had checked to make sure that Quinn had come back home in time for her parent's arrival.

She was shut up in her room to try on new outfits apparently.

Daria in the meanwhile gave Emory a hug before he left, and shocked the hell out of her mom and dad in the process and asked if he could come back soon.

"Actually I was hoping you could come up to Boston sometime," Emory informed her, "You showed me Lawndale, I should show you my hometown."

"Deal." Daria replied and gave him another hug.

Once he departed, Helen and Jake were silent for a long time while their eldest daughter went up the stairs with an unusual bounce in her step, and when she was secure in her room she glanced at the pile of books that her uncle had bought for her, titles she would normally have never considered but he had assured her were very good reads.

She smiled at the pile and grabbed the first one, _A Game of Thrones_ by George R. R. Martin and opened it.

"I'll see you in Boston." she whispered as she began to read.

Even while Quinn in her room stared at a pile of new clothes on the floor, unable to find pleasure in the latest teen fashions with the images of Daria with Uncle Emory flashing in her mind over and over again.

The less said about what they had been saying about her, to her face no less, the better in Quinn's opinion.

But it didn't help make the hurt go away.

"Because they... They are right." Quinn thought to herself once more, not feeling the white hot tears streaming down her face, ruining her makeup.

It took a long time for them to stop falling.

**THE END**

_Note: I shamelessly stole Jane's mblmblmbl's from God Save the Esteem._


	3. Emory's Spring Visitors

**Emory's Spring Visitors**

Emory Barksdale smiled with bemusement as the infamous 'Tank' parked on the curb in front of his apartment complex in downtown Boston, the side door opened almost instantly and his favorite niece bounded out and they both fell into a synchronized hug like two matching puzzle pieces.

"Daria," Emory said happily as soon as they let go of each other, "Welcome to Boston."

His niece gave one of her half-smiles and glanced back at the Tank as her friend Jane Lane stepped out and called out to Trent, "Just make sure to write down where you parked it in the garage, otherwise we'll never find it."

"Got it Janie." the drawling voice of Trent Lane emerged from an open window before the Tank began to drive away.

It made it five feet before it sputtered and died.

There was a pause before Trent stepped out of the vehicle and opened the hood and looked in for a second before saying, "We'd better let it cool down for an hour."

Emory glanced at his niece and she answered his unspoken question.

"Yeah, this happens a lot."

* * *

In Emory's tweedy and yet tasteful apartment, he had set up a couple air mattresses for his guests since he only had his bedroom and a small guest room, which he had learned they had drawn straws for, Daria had won that game.

"I do apologize for the accommodations." Emory told the two Lane kids, who shrugged it off and said they had slept on worse.

After they got settled, Emory went to the kitchen and grabbed the coffee pot and made himself a cup, his niece had followed him and asked if there was any tea to be had.

"I have some iced tea in the fridge." Emory informed her and Daria quickly made herself a glass, she even found the lemon slices and added one for some class.

They watched Jane having to direct Trent to the couch as he passed out from either the effects of his narcolepsy, or the 'strain' of the trip.

"So is this how you thought Spring Break would go?" Emory asked Daria as she walked up beside him at the kitchen island for a better look.

"Hmm..." Daria mused, "Considering that I had to fight Mom and Dad to make this happen... I honestly wasn't sure."

Emory gave her a curious look and asked, "Why'd they want you to stay in Lawndale? I thought they'd relish the chance to get some alone time together."

Daria's face went even flatter than normal as she replied, "Not sure myself... But for some reason whenever I bring you up they always get angry and never explain why."

Emory shrugged and said, "It seems that parents suck no matter the generation."

"I just wish I understood why though." Daria informed him with a frustrated sigh before adding, "Meh, forget it, the point is I'm here now, and I brought my friends for the week."

Emroy nodded and added, "Luhrman seemed excited at meeting you face to face again."

He noticed a hint of a blush on Daria's cheek and she asked, "Really? He didn't seem the type for excitement."

Emory smirked just a little, "Trust me, get to know a person and you can read the signs, even behind strong emotional walls."

Daria nodded before changing the subject, "So tomorrow we'll be getting the tour of Raft right?"

"And Boston Fine Arts College," Jane chimed in as she headed towards them, "I wanna see what BFAC has to offer."

Emory nodded, "Did you guys want to get a look at Crestmore also?"

Jane and Daria both offered non-committal shrugs, Jane didn't have the grades or the cash for a school like Crestmore, and while Daria had the first, the second would only come if Grandma Barksdale ponied up.

"As unlikely as her suddenly giving a damn about me or Helen." Emory thought bitterly.

But he hide it and said aloud, "Ok we'll skip Crestmore and do something more interesting... I'll take you to the Union Oyster House in lieu of the Ivy choked college."

That got a more positive response.

* * *

Emory's work and reputation had led him to making all kinds of interesting acquaintances in the cities where his work took him, mainly his hometown of Boston and New York.

Some of them worked in academia, and he had enough of them in both Raft and BFAC to secure not just guided tours for his niece and her best friend, but also a mock interview so they'd know how to present themselves and what to say during their actual interviews for both colleges.

Afterward, Emory proved to be true to his word and took them to the oldest restaurant in the United States, where they met up with Trent and his new companion, Luhrman.

Emory suppressed a grin as Daria and Luhrman greeted each other with more warmth than the other had expected, their embarrassed blushes reminded him of some of his own young loves.

Jane however got the same gleam in her eyes that he had seen when Daria had been crushing on her brother, and Emory warned her not to tease them.

"Well not too much." he added with a wink.

Jane gave him a blush and a mumbled yes, and he was glad that she had made progress on her own unspoken crush.

Inside they got a table after a twenty minute wait and were treated by Emory to some of the best seafood available in Boston.  
While they munch on lobster, Daria and Luhrman got caught up on each other's lives, even though they had stayed in touch with letters and phone calls since meeting at Erin and Brian's wedding.

As they all talked, Emory got to learn more about this boyfriend that Jane had been seeing, Tom Sloane.

"My my," Emory breathed in surprise at that name, "You do know how to pick them Ms. Lane."

Jane blushed at that, then Emory explained, "I know of Tom through his mother, Kay Sloane who moves through the art world and has her fingers in several museums."

He then added, "Including the one in Lawndale."

Daria seemed surprised, "Never thought of him as being rich, he drove a freaking Pinto for the longest time before it was towed."

Emory laughed, "Ah, I see..."

He didn't elaborate on what he saw, "A bored little rich boy slumming it."

He took note however that Daria didn't seem to like Tom very much, and he suspected it was because he was seeing Jane and taking up her time, which meant less time for Daria.

He had to suppress a sigh, "I'd have been that way if I had had a friend in High School." Emory told himself before excusing himself for a trip to the bathroom.

He went in and did his business and went to wash his hands and the door opened and Trent stepped in, but he went over to the sink, clearing wanting to talk about something.

"What's up Trent?" Emory asked the young adult who shrugged his shoulders.

"It's hard to explain," Trent drawled quietly, "It's just... I dunno, Janie going to college..."

Emory raised an eyebrow and asked, "It bothers you that she wants to go?"

Trent seemed a bit ashamed as he said, "Yeah..."

Emory chewed on that for a minute and said the first thing that came to mind, "Trent... From what I've seen and heard, you and Jane pretty much raised each other right?"

Trent nodded at that, not sure where this was going.

"And she's the only reason you stayed in Lawndale right?"

Trent nodded but more uncertain this time.

"So, if she does come to BFAC, why not just move here?" Emory asked him like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

Trent began to stammer immediate denials but they were rambling and even he knew that, so he fell silent and said something about his band.

"Just have them come with," Emory said with a laugh, "There's a strong Rock scene in Boston, trust me you'll get more exposure here than you ever will in Lawndale."

Trent stayed quiet and stared at the mirror, Emory just told him to think about it and walked out of the bathroom.

* * *

A little bit later as they explored the Institute of Contemporary Art, Trent randomly said to Emory, "I think you're right man."

Neither of them explained that cryptic statement to the girls or Luhrman.

* * *

Daria and Jane seemed to come alive in the 'City on a Hill', as John Winthrop once put it, as Emory played the role of chaperone with a joy that surprised even himself.

He took them to the museums, the galleries, the restaurants, and the little places that only a local could show you, though he did give them some space when required.

Especially when Daria and Luhrman were together, like when they were sightseeing at the Old North Church, Daria and Luhrman took seats together at a pew and just enjoyed the quiet for a long time.

Even Jane left them alone until it was time to leave.

But Emory had a surprise in store for them...

* * *

At Fenway Park, he introduced them to his secret passion, the game of Baseball.

Daria's eyes shined like twin supernovas as she watched her first professional baseball game, the Boston Red Sox were playing against the Cleveland Indians and mopping the floor with them.

Luhrman was sitting next to her, dressed in full Red Sox gear, Emory was just wearing a Red Sox hat, Jane was taking pictures, Trent had passed out and wouldn't wake up until Jane poked him very hard with a long, sharp nail-file.

* * *

As the week seemed to fly on by, the bond between Emory and his niece and her companions grew stronger, even the normally closed off adult found himself enjoying the company that Daria liked to keep.

And he opened up about his own life to them.

"I'm newly single," he informed them, "My ex-girlfriend Jolie broke up with me a few weeks ago."

"What happened?" Jane asked him out of curiosity.

Emory shrugged, "We just got bored and drifted apart, nothing major but it happens... And I learned the hard way a long time ago that trying to cling under those circumstances only makes it worse in the end."

The artist nodded as if he had just told her something profound.

* * *

The day before they were due to leave, the subject of Quinn came up between Emory and Daria.

"So how is the 'other' niece?" Emory asked her, since he hadn't really thought of Princess Quinn at all that week, or any week for that matter.

"About the same," Daria said with a weary sigh, "...Well in private she hasn't been quite as much the snotty bitch as she used to be, but in public I'm still her cousin."

Emory could see that Daria was hiding the hurt from that very well, but he still saw it.

"Her loss." he informed her before giving Daria a hug.

It was returned with strength.

* * *

Alas on Sunday they had to leave in the morning to make back to Lawndale to get enough sleep for the start of classes on Monday.

"But you can make up that sleep in class instead of being in bed." Emory teased them as they packed their things.

It took Trent a while to get the Tank rolling again, apparently the week of inactivity had nearly sent it to the grave, but it was resurrected on the third try and like Jesus in the Bible, it roamed the Earth once more.

Emory and Luhrman helped the girls get their luggage into the Tank and secure it with some rope, and they both pretended that the Tank wasn't as bad as it looked.

"It's much worse." Luhrman muttered to Emory who had to fight back laughter.

They found themselves staring at the departing vehicle with wistfulness, standing together on the curb until it was out of sight.

"I miss them already." Luhrman said flatly and Emory gave him a small smile.

"They'll be back," he assured the boy, "I can tell, the city's in their blood now."

Luhrman replied, "Don't you mean the cheesesteak?"

"That too." Emory answered with snark before they both headed on up to the older man's apartment for some coffee before Luhrman had to go back home.

Emory's apartment was something of an escape for Luhrman since his parents ignored him in favor of his brother Garrett, who was everything they had wanted in a son.

"They can keep that big idiot." Emory thought to himself as they entered his home again, "If they can't see the real worth of their younger son, then it's their loss."

Emory made them both a fresh pot of coffee before sitting down to watch Sick, Sad World together and whittled away the rest of their allotted time.

Leonard Luhrman smiled into his cup and thought, "I hope Emory's right... Cus I doubt there are many girls like _her_ out there..."

**THE END**


	4. Emory's Summer

**Emory's Summer**

It was summertime again in Boston, which Emory Barksdale had welcomed with open arms as he always did.

On the first day that it reached 80 degrees, he followed his time-honored tradition of drinking a combination of vodka and lemonade over ice while sitting in the sunshine pouring through his living room window.

"Bliss." Emory thought to himself happily.

The small portable CD player was playing _Lucy in the Sky With Diamonds_ as he leaned his head on the glass, his body sucking up the warmth as if his life depended on it.

He let his thoughts wander and they took him to the recent events with the three teenagers that had almost become a second family to him.

In Lawndale, Jane had broken up with the Sloane boy a couple weeks after leaving Boston. Tom hadn't even waited more than a week before pulling up at Daria's and struck up a conversation with her outside her door.

"And somewhere along the line hormones took over," Emory thought with some bemusement, "The folly of youth..."

Jane had a mixed reaction to this stunning turn of events, "On one hand she and Tom had broken up," Emory thought, "But on the other hand, the way they went about getting together felt like a slap to the face."

He sighed at the situation, since it had caused Jane to make a flip decision and sign up for a summer long trip to an art colony in Ashfield, a place that Emory himself was familiar with and had tried to warn her of, to little avail.

"Some lessons have to be learned the hard way," Emory reminded himself, "Granted she can learn a lot about art and the art world there, but she's going to get a look at the pretension, the teeming masses of art poseurs, and God knows what else."

There was a knock at his front door, he pulled a bud out of his ear and heard the familiar voice of Leonard, who preferred to be called by his surname of Luhrman.

Once he was let in, Luhrman sat on the couch and Emory joined him and turned on the TV and put it on a low volume.

After a minute of quiet, Luhrman spoke, "I got a call from Trent."

"Really?" Emory asked and when Luhrman nodded, he added, "Cool. What about?"

Luhrman gave a hint of a smirk, "He updated me on the latest, his band just finished practice, and if what Jane says is true then it's starting to pay off."

Emory said mockingly, "Mystik Spiral is becoming an actual band? Is this a sign of the End Times?"

They both chuckled and Luhrman added, "I guess seeing the bands in Boston really lit a fire under their butts."

Emory gave the dirty blond teen a smirk, "You can say the word 'ass' here Luhrman, we're all adults."

"You sure?" Luhrman asked him with more than a hint of irony.

"Point taken." Emory conceded with a shrug and they both turned to the television set and watched until a commercial came on.

Luhrman then asked Emory for some advice, "I think I met someone," Luhmran admitted with some reluctance, "Her name's Katie."

Emory just made a yes sound and indicated that he could go on.

Luhrman pulled a picture out of his wallet and showed it to him, it was of a pretty girl about a year younger, with lots of cherry red hair, freckles, and a cheeky grin.

Luhrman then tried to articulate what was bothering him but found himself in the rare moment of not knowing what to say.

Emory pondered this and reached a conclusion based on previous evidence.

"Luhrman," Emory said to the boy, "I know that you have an interest in Daria, and I'm not going to make predictions about the future, but I will say that if you try to wait around for her, you might wind up waiting for a long time and miss out on other opportunities in the meanwhile."

Luhrman blinked but otherwise didn't give any indication to the thoughts he had at this piece of advice.

"If you want to give dating this Katie a shot, go ahead." Emory told him, "Otherwise you'll just wind up beating yourself up the rest of your life with the 'what if?' questions."

Lurhman went, "Heh, I've been beaten up enough by my brother and would-be bullies, if I get in on the act, I might as well eat a bullet."

There was a pause before he added, "Please be assured that I was making a jest."

"I know." Emory replied with a slight upward twist of his lips.

They spent the rest of their time together in a comfortable silence.

* * *

Emory told his niece goodbye before hanging up his phone and walked out of his apartment with a rare smile in his heart.

"Quinn is getting a tutor," Emory thought gleefully as locked up, "This will either do her some good, or it will mark her utter mental destruction. One of the two."

He laughed as he left the apartment complex and hailed a cab, considering what he was planning to do that night, in nice clothes and looking clean cut and good, driving himself would be a bad idea.

* * *

One of his favorite places to get a drink that might also lead to meeting a member of the opposite sex was a nice, upscale, but not overtly trendy bar a good distance from his apartment.

He went to the bar and ordered a screwdriver, and enjoyed his drink in solitude among the masses, the sounds of the latest 'Alternative Rock' played in the background.

After ordering another drink, he found himself joined by a handsome woman that looked to be about his age, she was wearing a long baggy purple dress, her red hair done up in a ponytail, she wore big blue hoopy earrings and a blue sea-shell necklace.

She ordered, of all things, a kamikaze, and glanced at him glancing at her and smiled with her eyes.

"Hi ya stranger," she said to him by way of introduction.

"Hi back." Emory replied with a slight smile and pleasure in his eyes.

She smiled at that and introduced herself, and was surprised when the man revealed that he knew who she was.

"Jane talks about you all the time." he added and enjoyed shocking her even further.

"How do you know one of my students?" Claire Defoe asked with curiosity.

Emory Barksdale laughed, "She's a good friend of my niece, and we've been introduced."

"You're related to Brittany?!" Claire asked with amused surprise and at the same time testing to see if he really knew Jane and Daria, or if this was some sort of trick.

"Brittany?!" Emory answered in surprise, "No my niece's name is Daria, Daria Morgendoffer, I'm her uncle, Emory Barksdale."

Claire laughed at that, "Oh my, Daria and Jane prove to be full of surprises, and they're not even here this time."

Emory finished his drink and ordered a kamikaze for himself and replied, "That they are Ms. Defoe, that they are."

Claire gave him a smile that said quite a bit, but spoke with words, "You can call me Claire."

"Alright," Emory replied, "As long as you call me Emory."

"Sounds fair to me." Claire replied and ordered another drink for herself, but Emory covered the bill.

It proved to be a most interesting night.

* * *

It turned out that Claire Defoe had come up to Boston for a whole week that summer, wanting to see the sights before having to go back to Lawndale to take up a temporary job at a Greenhouse to help cover her costs of living.

Emory showed her the art museums, and enjoyed it when she showed him a small portfolio of her own work, it was a true pleasure to see her eyes light up when he praised what she had created.

"I have a feeling that she's spent so much time nurturing the talent of others that she's hardly ever heard anyone say that her own body of work is good, damn good." Emory thought to himself at one point.

Of course when he wasn't showing her what Boston had to offer, they spent quite a bit of time in his bed, she had been bumming on a friend's couch but found herself crashing at Emory's that week instead.

Sadly the week ended, much more quickly than either of them wanted, but they departed with kisses and an exchange of numbers, fully intending to stay in touch.

* * *

After thoroughly enjoying shocking the hell out of Daria with his news, Emory listened to hers.

As she talked, the picture quickly became clear.

Her new boyfriend, Tom Sloane had taken her to his parents country club for food and had bumped into his family unexpectedly, an awkward affair for all, but Daria most of all.

On top of that it turned out there was the Starry Night Ball that he hadn't even bothered to inform her of, much less invite her too.

"What does Jane say?" Emory asked, and then hoped against hope that she and Jane were still talking at least.

"Well she did tell me that Tom took her to some other event once and it bored her to tears." Daria answered, and Emory felt relief wash over him.

But he didn't let it show as he replied, "Yeah, those suit and tie events are pretty dull, maybe he was worried that if he took you that you'd be uncomfortable, like at that club you mention."

There was a pause before Daria said with reluctance, "That's possible."

Emory chuckled, "Well have you asked him?"

Daria sighed, "I've been avoiding him."

"That's a mistake," Emory informed her, "Look, I know that social interaction isn't your thing per se, but a relationship does require that you both sit down and sort things out from time to time, or so I'm told."

Daria managed a weak laugh, "I'll take it under consideration."

"Better make it sooner rather than later," Emory admonished, "Or else things will fall apart before they've even begun."

"Um... Thanks for that," Daria replied awkwardly, "It's just..."

She began to grope for the right words, which Emory helpfully supplied, "This is new to you, hell my first high school relationships were messes due to my lack of experience in... well... Dealing with other human beings."

"It was an eye-opening experience," Emory added, "I had to open myself up in ways I never had before, it was scary and it does leave you open to being hurt, but I've learned that is what life is about. Being hurt and learning to deal with it and moving on to squeeze some happiness out of it, because otherwise you'll never be happy at all."

He then laughed, "Sorry for the big speech Daria."

"That's ok," Daria replied softly, "I think I needed to hear it."

"That's what I'm here for Daria." Emory answered truthfully, then added, "So anything else new?"

Daria laughed bitterly, "Mom shanghaied me into being a counselor at a summer camp."

"Ouch!" Emory winced in sympathy pain, "Is it at that Camp Grizzy you mentioned?"

"Worse," Daria replied and then explained all about her English teacher's idea of a summer camp, the name alone was an abomination.

Emory shuddered, "That place needs to be burned to the ground and sown with salt."

"I'll see what I can do." Daria assured him with her Mona Lisa smile evident in her voice.

* * *

The weekend after the Fourth of July, Emory had managed to meet with Claire in Lawndale and had spent most of that Saturday in her company, though he did meet with Daria and her boyfriend at the local pizza place.

It was easier than going to her house and dealing with Helen and Jake, whom according to Daria seemed to have developed a dislike of him, but wouldn't explain the why of it.

Daria herself shrugged it off, "They can think whatever they want, you are the only real family that I've had consistently since I met you at Erin's wedding."

While munching on a cheese pizza slice, Emory smiled, "I think that's what we've managed to become Daria, a real family. Which I'll admit I don't think I've ever really had..."

Emory Barksdale sighed sadly and blinked for a second, then he felt a pair of arms wrap themselves around him.

He opened his eyelids and found Daria had gotten up and come around the table and was now hugging him tight.

His shock faded quickly and he hugged her back and said, "I love you Daria."

"I love you too Uncle Emory." she replied.

She felt him laugh against her chest, "I've told you, you are free to call me Emory."

She let go and said with a wide smile, something that Tom hadn't seen on her before at all, "I know, but it felt right that time."

Emory gave her a big smile to match.

* * *

It was in New York a week later that he got a frantic call from Jane from Ashfield, "What's wrong?" he asked even as he dreaded the answer.

The story she had to tell was a doozy.

He had heard (from Daria) that she had met a cool college student named Allison, a lone fellow traveler amidst a sea of idiot posers, this year being led by Daniel Dotson.

Emory snickered at that, "He was the flavor of the month in the art world... ten years ago."

That made Jane laugh a little, breaking up the tension a bit, but only momentarily.

She then told him about going to a nice restaurant with Alison, who had poured her drink after drink, then taken her back to the art colony and had made a pretty big pass at her over another bottle of booze.

"I freaked out," Jane said to him, "Then she tried to tell me that I had 'gay vibes', but I bolted anyway."

She then admitted that the whole thing freaked out more than she had let on to the others, it even made her question her sexual interests a bit.

"Then I saw her hanging on that... that... blech!" Jane said with disgust, and it didn't take a rocket scientist to figure this one out.

"Oh God," Emory breathed into the receiver as his mind painted him the picture even before she told him about it.

They lined up, more or less, and it made him sick to his stomach for her.

"There's life's lessons," Emory thought to himself, "Then there's pure bullshit, this is the latter."

So he told her in no uncertain terms, "You need to leave, as soon as possible, if you can't get Trent there, I'll come by myself, whatever you can't fit into my car we can just have shipped back home by FedEx."

"...Thank you!" Jane hissed with audible relief.

"No problem," Emory informed her with perfect sincerity, "It's what family does."

Jane managed a weak laugh, "Since when did you become my dad?"

She asked that in nice tones, taking the sting right off.

"I don't know," Emory admitted, "But if I had a daughter... Well two daughters, I'd like them to be like you and Daria."

"That is the nicest thing I've heard in a good long while," Jane told him, "So if I can't get a hold of Trent, you'll come?"

"You don't have to doubt it, ever." Emory assured her firmly, and she believed him.

* * *

On his way back to Boston, Emory had been updated on the Jane situation by Daria, who had been told about what had happened by Trent, who had also asked to borrow the Morgendorffer's SUV so he could get as much of Jane's stuff as possible in one go, in a working vehicle.

A horrified Helen and Jake had let him have the keys without a second thought once he told them the story.

Once he was back in town, he got a call from Luhrman as his cab sped it's way to his apartment, and he told the kid he could let himself in.

As soon as he arrived, he found Luhrman sitting on the couch, the TV off, looking like he had been run over with a truck.

Emory set his bags down next to the door and went over and asked what was wrong.

As it turned out, Luhrman had a story of his own.

"Katie wasn't interested in me," Luhrman said in dead, flat tones, even for him, "She... She was just using me to try and get to my brother, Garrett."

"Oh Luhrman," Emory breathed mournfully and took a risk and hugged the boy, and found Luhrman hugging him back.

"But," Luhrman murmured into Emory's shirt, "Garrett... He... He turned her down the instant he figured it out."

"...Really?" Emory asked in surprise and Luhrman nodded, a few tears streaming down his face but otherwise as stoic as he could manage.

"He told her to, and I quote, 'Get your skank ass out!' and when she tried to keep pushing it, he started to call the cops." Luhrman told him and managed to put some happiness into his misery, "...It's the nicest thing he's ever done for me."

Emory smiled and pulled Luhrman into an even tighter hug and thought to himself, "That's what real brothers do."

* * *

Summer sped on by, between work and finding time to meet with Claire on the weekends when they could both afford it, time just kept on slipping into the future.

Or so that one song said on the radio.

But even then he always had time to talk to Daria on the phone and got regular updates on her life and the lives of those that they now mutually cared about.

"Trent and the guys made a song just for me and Jane," Daria told him "They named it 'Freakin Friends'."

They both laughed, even after Daria played him a sample over the line.

"I have to admit that they must be practicing for real," Emory stated, "Otherwise it wouldn't have sounded like an actual song."

Daria chuckled, "The kids at the Zon were impressed, a band that played there with actual talent is like finding an albino whale in the ocean."

"Does that mean we have to hunt them down no matter the personal cost?" Emory asked of her.

Daria just laughed, "Nah, that requires effort, and I don't want to expend it."

She then told him about finding common ground with Tom again, before he had to go to the Cove, and that Jane had gotten over her hang-ups with Tom now dating her best friend.

"I think the Ashfield thing really shook her," Daria informed him, "But she's always got us."

"Yes she does." Emory answered without missing a beat.

Daria then talked about the Okay to Cry Corral, her English teacher's idea of a Summer Camp, which to any sane person was a stone's throw away from Auschwitz.

Then she told him about a boy that went there named Link, and his troubled family life.

"I tried to help him," Daria told him with worry in her voice, "But that idiot O'Neill just had to butt in and ruined it."

Emory gritted his teeth, "Your teacher sounds like a self-absorbed douche."

"That's not even the half of it." Daria assured him, and then changed the clearly uncomfortable subject to her sister, Quinn.

"Desperate to avoid the subject indeed." Emory thought to himself with amusement, until Daria started talking about it.

During the summer, Quinn had been seeing a tutor named David Sorenson, a nice, polite, but geeky guy that went to Crestmore, since her low PSTATS had served as a wakeup call, of sorts.

"Apparently she developed a crush on him," Daria explained, "Then when she got up the guts to ask him out, he blew her off as 'too shallow'."

"Ouch!" Emory said in sympathy pain for his other niece.

"She was really hurt by it," Daria added, "So much so that I had to give her the 'hurt speech' that you gave me, by the way I did neglect to give credit where credit was due on that one."

"It's ok Daria," he replied kindly, "You were busy repairing the damage, it's forgiven and forgotten."

Daria chuckled, "I knew you'd understand."

"That seems to be my talent these days," Emory teased, "I really should start charging for it."

"I think you need a psychiatric license for that." Daria retorted with good humor.

"Damn!" Emory replied, "Too late to change career paths now I suppose..."

"Guess you should stick with being the uncle slash father figure, huh?"

"I guess," Emory replied with a grin, "So... I'll be in town the week before you go back to school to see Claire, you and the others up for a meeting at some point while I'm there?"

"Always." Daria assured him with cheer.

* * *

The day before he went back down to the Lawndale area to meet with Claire and his second family, Emory met with Luhrman at a small coffee shop, with their liquid energy on hand, they sat at a small table together and conversed.

Luhrman talked about the fallout from the Katie situation, "My parents were proud of my brother for standing up for me." Luhrman said, but wasn't complaining about their favoritism, "In fact, I'm proud of the big lug myself."

Emory smirked, "I'm still stunned as hell myself."

"I guess it goes to show that you can't always judge a book by it's cover." Luhrman stated, before amending it with, "Unless those books are people that are of the 'idiotic persuation'."

"Then judge away my young apprentice," Emory assured him, "Judge away."

The overpriced drinks that used to be coffee never tasted sweeter to either one of them.

**THE END**


	5. Emory and Claire

**Emory and Claire**

In a room that was decked out in 'latter-day hippie', Emory Barksdale found himself naked as the day he was born, lying in bed with the sheets pulled down.

Emory turned his head and gave a soft smile at the slumbering figure next to him.

"God you look so beautiful right now Claire," Emory whispered softly to the gorgeous older redhead.

It had been the first time in about a month that they had been able to see each other, and as soon as he had knocked on her door, they had skipped the preliminaries and had gotten down and dirty.

Emory watched her shift position but not wake up and suppressed a sigh, he wanted to see more of her, in fact a part of him wanted something from her that he had never thought he'd want from anyone.

'And be honest, it's scares you to death.' A voice whispered in his mind.

Emory batted it away and found himself thinking of their situation, neither of them had done a long distance relationship.

At least, on Emory's part one that had lasted as long as this.

Even after summer had ended, he and Claire had kept in touch, visiting each other in their hometowns whenever possible, which for Claire was nearly impossible due to financial situation.

So Emory had made nearly all the trips to Lawndale to see her.

But after the fifth one, Emory had been asked by a colleague if it bothered him, and Emory had enjoyed shocking him by saying no, not at all.

Since being in Lawndale gave him a chance to see Daria and Jane, along with Claire in a more relaxed environment.

It was senior year for those girls and the hijinks at Lawndale High seemed endless, but being their last year gave them enough leeway to form a more powerful bond with their art teacher, Ms. Defoe than they normally could have gotten away with.

Whenever the four of them had pizza, or watched Mystik Spiral perform, or beheld Jane's attempt at selling her art at 'Art in the Park', or simply just talked, it felt like family.

Emory thought these things as he watched Claire getting her energy back after their extracurricular activities and wondered what a hypothetical future would be like with her in it.

'Well,' Emory pondered, 'We'd have to live in Boston, or some other major city for my sake since her current job doesn't even pay peanuts. Between my job and the family trust that Mother can't take away, she wouldn't have to work at all if she didn't want too.'

Emory then amended that, since he couldn't imagine Claire Defoe not working on her own art projects. Or doing some sort of instructional course for aspiring artists.

'That's who she is in the end, Emory.' that voice whispered again, 'A teacher, _and_ an artist.'

He had already been suggesting that she at least consider looking into finding a job in the Boston area, since she'd get paid more and he'd let her crash in his apartment rent free.

"And I'd be your only roommate." Emory often added with a hint of glee.

Claire would always answer back, "Now there is a tempting bonus."

She wasn't making a sex joke, the roommates that she shared her current apartment with were pretty much parasites and two-faced jerks of the highest order.

But Claire was a free spirit and she would take her time before committing herself to a decision like that, even if it was with someone like him.

"I can wait," Emory whispered to himself quietly, "We've got time, and besides. Lawndale sucks."

That more than anything would make living with him in Boston a sure thing, once Claire was willing to say yes.

'Plus being able to see Daria and Jane during their college years would just be more icing on the cake.' Emory thought to himself with glee.

He then dared to ponder that part of himself that also scared him senseless. That part of his soul that now wanted more than anything to wake her up, get down on bent knee and ask Claire Defoe to be his wife.

The part of his soul that wanted to ask that question grew in size that day, not enough to make him pop the question right then and there, but it did become a bit more _real_ to one Emory Barksdale.

Even as Claire began to snore softly in her sleep.

**THE END**


End file.
